California begins citrus psyllid treatments

As the CDFA prepares to start applying insecticides to fruit trees in parts of San Juan Capistrano on June 4, state officials asked residents at a public meeting to help prevent the spread of a bug-borne virus that could threaten California's $2-billion citrus crop.

Orange County Register | Jun 04, 2012

From the Orange County Register:

As they prepare to start applying insecticides to fruit trees in parts of San Juan Capistrano on Monday, state officials asked residents at a public meeting Thursday night to help prevent the spread of a bug-borne virus that could threaten California's $2 billion citrus crop.

To try to prevent the bug's spread, officials of the California Department of Food and Agriculture plan to begin Monday to apply insecticides to citrus trees and surrounding soil in an area roughly between Alipaz Street in the west and La Novia Avenue in the east, centered by Camino Capistrano and San Juan Creek Road. In the next month, about 6,000 residents will receive notices describing the process and scheduling times for the treatment.

Officials say California is the last major citrus-growing region in the world that has not been decimated by the HLB virus.